Both are dual threats who, as true freshmen, produced encouraging three-win seasons. Both are sophomores this season and share a similar goal -- be the starter when the Tigers open the season Aug. 30 on the road against Alabama-Birmingham.
Bell and Gibbons are on the same page working toward another common goal -- helping SSU compete for a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference title.
"When I think about the last two years, each year we've had a true freshman playing (quarterback) and it's hard to play at a real high level when your quarterback doesn't have much experience," Tigers coach Erik Raeburn said. "This year, that doesn't look like the case. Whoever we put out there will have games under their belt and have been under fire before. Hopefully, that will translate into good quarterback play and we'll be able to compete with everyone."In 2016, Bell threw for 762 yards and ran for 307 yards while sharing time with another highly regarded freshman, Blake Dever.
Bell threw a touchdown pass in SSU's overtime upset of Bethune-Cookman and had big games in wins over Howard and Norfolk State.
Against Howard, Bell threw for 241 yards and his 6-yard TD pass with 19 seconds left gave the Tigers a dramatic 31-27 victory.
He had 159 passing yards and three TDs and ran for another 149 yards and a score in a 31-14 win over Norfolk.
The 6-foot-3, 195-pounder was the MEAC "Rookie of the Week" after the performance against Howard and the league's "Offensive Player of the Week" after the Norfolk game.
When Dever transferred before the 2017 season, Bell had the starting job when camp opened, no questions asked.
But Bell said he suffered an injury during training camp. He hobbled through parts of games against Appalachian State and Montana before being shut down for the season.
The injury propelled Gibbons, who was part of the Tigers' 2017 signing class, to the forefront.
"It was difficult at first, but everything happens for a reason and I used the time off to learn the playbook better and help D'Vonn out," Bell said. "I felt like a coach after a while."
Gibbons' steady improvement was apparent. The 6-2, 205-pound lefthander finished the season throwing for 1,259 yards and 10 TDs and rushing for 462 yards, and the Tigers ended 2017 on a high note with wins over Norfolk State, Delaware State and South Carolina State.
"I just had to work on myself, my reads, and once I started getting better at that you could see my improvement over the season," Gibbons said. "(Against Norfolk State) everything clicked, offensively and defensively. We looked like a good team out there."
The backstory of the two quarterbacks bodes well for the Tigers' future. Raeburn said he'd like to see one emerge as a clear-cut starter, but has no qualms about rotating two.
"You rotate two linebackers, nobody says anything, but you play two quarterbacks and everyone loses their minds," Raeburn said. "I don't think any coach wants to have two quarterbacks rotating but I have to have a reason not to rotate them. It's the same at every position. If two guys are playing equally, they have to play an equal amount. If one guy is performing better, he gets the playing time."
Neither quarterback appears worried about the scrutiny ahead and seems to welcome competition.
"I came into camp just working to get better," Gibbons said. "I'll let (starting) handle itself and come the first game, whoever's on the field, we're going to do our best to help the team win."
"We're going to make each other better and that's going to be good for the team," Bell said.
And that's a winning attitude, says Raeburn.
"When you're competing for playing time, you want to make sure there's no animosity," Raeburn said. "We're all Tigers and we're all trying our best to beat the other guy out. They want to be the starter because they're playing great not because the other guy is messing up."
SAVANNAH STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA RELATIONS
No comments:
Post a Comment